Reliance Jio launch may be deferred to December

The commercial launch of Jio’s high-speed data services were highly anticipated around March end-April timeframe while the telco has already done a soft launch on December 27, 2015 restricted to parent company Reliance industries’ staff and their families.ETTelecom | Updated: March 23, 2016, 09:38 IST

NEW DELHI: Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Jio Infocomm is likely to defer mega launch of fourth-generation or 4G services to December this year, a Business Standard report citing Bank of America Merrill Lynch finding said.

The commercial launch of Jio’s high-speed data services were highly anticipated around March end-April timeframe while the telco has already done a soft launch on December 27, 2015 restricted to parent company Reliance industries’ staff and their families.

"Despite completing an employee soft launch in December 2015, we do not yet have visibility on the timeline on commercial launch by Jio. In our recent meetings with industry participants, we found a consistent view coming out of risks of Jio launch being pushed to December 2016," the brokerage firm said.

IIFL Institutional Equities in its note dated March 22 said that considering the likely timelines of the RCom-Sistema merger, and initial trial reports of Jio's VoLTE offerings, a full-scale 850 MHz-supported launch by Jio is likely by December."

Reliance Jio has already inked a pact with Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Communications for airwaves sharing while the latter has acquired the Russsian telco Sistema that offers services under the MTS brand.

The deal allowed Reliance Communications to get access to MTS spectrum in the 850 Mhz band that can be used to offer 4G services.

The RCom’s MTS acquisition requires approvals from the Rajasthan High Court and the Bombay High Court, and a go ahead nod from the Department of Telecom (DoT). The entire process, according to legal experts might take more than two to three months.

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BSNL is yet to get the department of telecom (DoT) nod for commercially rolling out 4G services while the Narendra Modi-led government is eyeing to launch fifth-generation or 5G technology together with matured markets worldwide in 2020.